About
Why Am I Here?
Are you like most everyone I know?
Do you have WISHES, HOPES and DREAMS of “What if…..?” or “Someday I want to ….” or “I wonder if I could go back to…..?” or “I sure do wish I could…..” or “I hope I can make it to……!”
Do you worry about:
- losing your job or being able to pay all your bills on time?
- your kids staying drug-free and NOT hanging around with the wrong people?
- your children getting a good education, graduating, going to college or a good job?
- the health of your aging parents and being able to provide adequately for their last years?
- keeping your own health and staying strong to enjoy your children or your own retirement?
- the investments you’ve made and their value for your future lifestyle?
- your Spiritual well-being or development?
- how you’ll spend the REST of YOUR LIFE, doing what, with whom and where?
Do you wish you had a Trusted Advisor that you could talk to about nearly anything that really concerns you, and know that the conversation is confidential and based on what YOU WANT to achieve??
Did you know that your THOUGHTS create your EMOTIONS, which cause your ACTIONS?? And those actions create your LIFE, YOUR HEALTH, WEALTH AND WELL-BEING! So, to begin to change your life, you must learn to change your THOUGHTS!
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I have felt so many of those same worries, thoughts and concerns, too! And here are some examples that I hear about on a daily basis:
Do you think there are HUGE gaps in what we need or want and what is provided to us by the Educational system, Insurance companies and Healthcare Providers, just to name a few?
How do we get “back” to SAFER, MORE PERSONALIZED, MORE SATISFYING LIVING without all the worries about how the world is changing so rapidly into a place that we don’t feel comfortable and appreciated anymore?
Don’t worry, this is NOT a political thesis, not an environmental or religious one, either.
IT’S A REAL SIMPLE STATEMENT OF SOME OF OUR WORRIES, HOPES, FEARS, PROBLEMS AND POSSIBILTIES!
THIS IS MY ANALYSIS OF THE MOST STRESSFUL CAUSES OF NEGATIVE THINKING, FEELING AND ACTING IN OUR WORLD.
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Who AM I?
I’m going to tell you about my background, who I am and what I’m about, so you can better understand how human I am and I can become more familiar to you.
I grew up in the Deep South in the 50’s and 60’s when children there were taught to be respectful to parents and other adults like teachers, policemen, ministers, priests, rabbis, and the elderly folks in their community. There were serious expectations of kids because most people had a certain code of ethics that was applied to all. I have standards that define my behavior with courtesy and respect.
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How It All Started
At the early age of five, I firmly and frequently announced that I was “going to be a doctor” when I grew up. This was a time in history when there WERE women doctors but not very many of them–in fact, when I had my tonsils taken out at age five, the doctor who did the surgery would chuckle every time he’d visit me in the hospital. He would make a point of telling the nurses that I was going to be a nurse when I grew up. That would bring me to an emphatic declaration that I was NOT going to be a nurse, but a DOCTOR!! (Everyone knew that girls were NURSES and boys were DOCTORS!)
That continued to remain my vision until the end of nine years of college was reached with a graduation declaring my new status of “Doctor!” My college years had consisted of intense study and promotion to the next level as well as being married and working to help a husband graduate from college as a Doctor, too.
I had always planned to be a surgeon, never being upset by the sight of blood, but only upset by the injury or illness and wanting to be able to repair or heal the person or animal involved.
That road took a detour when I was in a bad auto accident with a dear friend who lost her first baby that night. She recovered and I…….. developed a different dream over time.
Always wanting to be a Medical Doctor, I expected to use traditional American treatments because that’s all I had ever known……..other than the occasional visit to the Chiropractor. To tell the truth, I didn’t know anything about the education of Chiropractors or even that women could become Chiropractors!
However, the day after the accident, I couldn’t raise my head from the pillow or turn it to either side without excruciating pain! I stayed in bed that day, but the next day I asked my husband to take me to the doctor because it wasn’t any better. After following the “traditional American” treatment plan of pain pills, muscle relaxants, and bed rest for about a week………… I was STILL NO BETTER!!
I kept thinking that “I needed a Chiropractic treatment” because that had always relieved the severe pain I would have in my neck, shoulders and back from unusual exercise of any kind or any fall.
My husband was managing a restaurant in Illinois near a Chiropractic College and several students were employed there. They told me about the student clinic where the soon-to-be-doctors were doing their Internship with patients from the general public. They told me how excellent the school was and what their previous background that prepared THEM for Medical school was, and I was so impressed that I followed their advice.
I went to the Clinic and…. immediately began to travel down my new road to becoming the Doctor I had always wanted to be.
That graduation was 30 years ago, after 5 years in pre-med education and then another 4 years of Chiropractic College, with specialties in Nutrition, Acupuncture, Radiology and Laboratory Diagnosis. I graduated from one of the top schools of Chiropractic with an International and Interdisciplinary roster of professors, D.C.’s, M.D.’s, Ph.D’s, Research Scientists, Orthopedists, Doctors of Oriental Medicine, Geneticists, Radiologists, Internists, Physical Therapists and Pharmacists, to name a few. I say all this to give people a bit of background about the profession of Chiropractic.
My husband of 11 years and I were divorced after graduation and we moved back down South where I went into practice in an established clinic in the Mobile, Alabama area. The doctors that I worked with were a family of Mother, Father and Son, and it was a safe, nurturing environment in which to start my practice.
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My Vision:
That was when I began my current specialty even though it wasn’t called that back then, and that’s Life and Wellness Coaching. The Coaching was such a HUGE part of my practice, because I’ve said to my patients over the years, “What is going on inside your head and heart is what’s expressing itself in your body in pain and disease!”
I left the first clinic after several months, getting used to speaking Southern again after living up North in Chicago for seven years. I’m enough of a “hard-headed” woman, that I wanted to do things “My Way!” and opened my own clinic in downtown Mobile, Alabama.
My ultimate goal was to teach ALL my patients, parents of young children, middle-aged and elderly patients, and anybody else who would listen to me–patient or not, that WELLNESS is UP TO EACH OF US!!!
It is all about taking care of our body with good natural food, good thoughts, good beliefs, good health practices like Chiropractic, healthful exercise, Spiritual beliefs, good friends and loved ones. That doesn’t mean that things don’t happen to challenge us, but how we respond to those challenges determines how we heal and grow.
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What Can You Expect From Me?
There are certain things that are such a “part of me,” so deeply ingrained that I’m not sure they could ever be excised. For example, I listen carefully to discover pertinent details of my Client’s history to help find the “CAUSE” of the problem, not just what shows up as “SYMPTOMS.” You see, this was essential in my Chiropractic practice!
Often the real Cause is not recognized by the Client, but thought to be something entirely different .
For example, many people don’t realize that THEY TEACH others (family members, spouses, friends, employers, etc.) how to treat them!!
By denying your feelings, not trusting your “gut” feelings, not believing that YOUR feelings are real and VALID and not being true to yourself, you TEACH others to “assume and believe” that you don’t care if they say or do hurtful things to you.
This is usually a hard concept to put into practice, because you have to “learn” to say things in away that isn’t argumentative or confrontational or blaming, to let people know that certain behavior is unacceptable to you. Peace-loving, non-confrontational people will often let stronger, more out-spoken ones dominate them.
The unhealthy practice of “stuffing” your own feelings to a place deep down inside can go on for a long time—-until finally, one day, all of a sudden, the dam breaks and you can’t hold it in any longer and you explode all over the place on everyone that’s within earshot or reach!!! And over time, relationships will not only dissolve or break, but this “STUFFING” usually leads to ILLNESS. It can lead to self-destructive practices that have a rebound effect and worsen the self-confidence and the entire life of that person.
When you can see how your own strengths and talents can support you in positive ways, you can find solutions that you never dreamed of–or in fact, ONLY dreamed of!!!
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Coach or Therapist?
Coach-training Organizations point out the major difference in a Coach and a Counselor, Therapist or Psychologist is in the techniques and procedures used to assist the Client. The philosophy is that of focusing on what the YOU, the Client, wants to achieve, the “TAKE-AWAY” that YOU, the Client wants to accomplish in the session.
Coaching is about helping someone find their OWN INNER STRENGTHS and TALENTS and finding THEIR CHOSEN SOLUTION to the difficult issue. This is often accomplished best over a period of time, usually about three to six months, but may well be in just ONE or a few sessions. That depends on Your awareness of your own limiting beliefs about your issue and your willingness to look at other options or ideas…..and go about implementing them!
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Terminology:
Here is a very simple “Coaching Model” that pertains to each client and each situation. As a Coach, my mission is to actively listen, “BEING WITH YOU right NOW!” instead of planning what I’m going to say or do next. This is to allow my training and intuition to participate completely in understanding your dilemma, rather than “thinking ahead” and having a preconceived notion that I “already know what you should do.”
These Concepts and Phrases are common in this profession and are somewhat self-explanatory.
- Clarifying the Client’s “AGENDA”: I like to know as much as possible about your situation to have a very clear idea of what you’re “stuck” about. I listen closely and then ask probing questions to be certain that I understand what you want to achieve in this session before we move to the next step.
- In my Coaching practice, as with any professional Specialist/Client relationship, my promise of CONFIDENTIALITY is honored.
- The Coaching model is SIMPLE and flows naturally through a series of steps. It is about helping you find your OWN solutions, coming to those options after exploring several ways to see the “problem” from a different angle.
- When the one that feels the best to you is found, I check to be sure that there is a “Good Feeling,” in other words, a “SHIFT,” in the way you feel about the problem. Instead of the feeling of frustration or “being stuck and can’t think of a solution,” you now have a feeling of encouragement or empowerment to take an action step toward a new outcome.
- The next step is to “FRAME IT” like you would a photograph, when the mental picture is set up just right. You can think of it like outlining the next steps you can take to get to the desired outcome.
- There must be some agreement between the Coach and You to do certain things within a designated time-frame and then there is the “FOLLOW-UP” or “ACCOUNTABILITY” action. This is the PROOF of SUCCESS or the need to continue.
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How We’ll Communicate
The best way to communicate in Life and Wellness Coaching is one-on-one, in person or by telephone. Follow-up is often easier by email, confirming the decisions reached in the session itself, and the action steps agreed upon to reach the next level.
Email is the most convenient method of contact other than the actual sessions. I will call You for the sessions if you are in the United States. If that isn’t the case, we will make other arrangements.
I will also send reports or newsletters if you want. These may be by other authors and be on any related subject that may be helpful. There may also be a regular newletter from me that YOU will sign up for with helpful information about health, wellness and success.
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Why You Are So Special To Me
By working with YOU closely and personally, by taking a special interest in YOUR issues and successful resolutions, I expect to develop a long-standing and sincere relationship. I hope to see lives changed dramatically and that the wisdom that comes from these changes will be passed on to other generations and cultures.
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Referrals and Testimonials
I want to do something real nice for REFERRING others! That’s the best way for a business to grow, you know. The finest way I know to show you how much I appreciate you is to give you additional services at no charge~~so when you refer a new client who joins my network, I’ll give YOU a session for FREE!
I hope to get a testimonial from each one of you after we find a good solution for your problem.
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My Own Mentors and Advisors
There will be other experts and mentors of mine included on my website by links that you can access to confirm or get additional information on a particular topic.